Oh how I love Paris!

It was a long time in coming, but I finally made it back to Vegas after a two year show hiatus thanks to my daughter and her insistence that we see Barry's show together one last time. Since I hadn't seen the show since it moved from the Hilton, I was looking forward to finally seeing it for myself and not just through the eyes of others. I had heard so much about it and about the theater itself that I was antsy with anticipation.My good Britfriend, Joanne, kindly offered to let me use her free tickets she won during the 15 Minutes promotion. We scored some seats in the center orchestra section about 10 rows from the stage, smack dab among all the fans. My daughter immediately noticed the fan conclave at the front of the auditorium and asked, "Are those women Barry's hostesses?" Of course, it was half sarcastic and I explained that the fans hang out at the front before the show. She said, "Why?". Oh the questions that "civilians" ask and the answers that fans come up with to justify odd behavior. (But that's for another blog).

The theater itself was gorgeous: the chandeliers, the red interior draped walls, the large stage. I loved the backdrop (curtain) with the french flair and was looking forward to the show. We settled in our seats and prepared to be amazed. Once the show started, I made a phone call to my Australian friend Kim so she could share in the excitement. I wonder how many phone calls were made that weekend to let other fans listen in to the show? Over the years, I've been a person on the other end of some of those calls, especially during conventions, hoping to hear a once-in-a-lifetime performance, as we were all hoping for that night.

Since there has already been some reviews about the show, I won't go into details. I will, however, tell you my first impression seeing the Paris show after two years and how I felt it compared to the show at the Hilton. The obvious difference was the size of the stage and the absence of the side stage seats. For Barry, less opportunity to be mauled by over zealous fans. For the fans, less opportunity for those special moments (putting on his coat, dancing with him, singing with him). I believe this non-fan interaction changed the show on some level, making it seem less personal and more Vegasy. Although, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing, just a change.

There were however, some changes in the show format and staging that I absolutely loved. The first was the huge MANILOW as a backdrop, along with the art and photos that dropped down over the stage at various moments during the performance. It made the show classy and gave a production air to it that wasn't there at the Hilton. The photos dropped down and moved across the stage during key segments and added to each number's expressiveness.

There were some great changes to the well known segments of Bandstand, the piano duels during New York City Rhythm and the segment where Barry talks about his grandfather. I loved how they changed up the Bandstand number and included more dancing by the backup singers. I also thought that the dueling pianos segment was much more of an extravaganza the way they brought out more pianos on stage highlighting the pianists with different types of music. It was great how they started off segments with the sax player and the percussionists as well. But my favorite change was the segment including the story of Barry and his grandfather. Hearing baby Barry sing Nature Boy was a real treat and having Barry end the segment on the keyboard singing the same song was absolutely fabulous.

Although I was looking forward to hearing some 15 Minutes songs, we were treated to a Christmas segment which I thoroughly enjoyed and was so much fun. We were also treated to a new voice from what was heralded as a talent discovery from the video submissions on the Manilow Network. Although the lady was incredibly talented, I found out that she had been on stage before with David Foster and already performed in Las Vegas. It wasn't such a stretch because she seemed to OWN the stage.

The ending of the show was different, with Barry coming on stage for Copacabana in a tux while being raised up from below the stage. Cute, but I still liked the catwalk at the Hilton and the excitement that it seemed to bring to the audience.

Hands down, the best part of the show went on behind me and my daughter during the last few songs. There was an elderly gentleman with a walker sitting behind us and his wife was able to help him stand during the last few numbers. His eyes lit up as he waved his glow stick and sang along with the songs. His wife seemed ecstatic that he was able to participate in the final moments of the show and they were both grinning from ear to ear. I wondered what was his story? Why was he there? How long had he been a fan? And I couldn't help but wonder how much of the show he had missed because of everyone standing up in front of him for a good portion of the show when he wasn't physically able to stand to see.

All in all, I'm glad I got to see the Paris show before he ended his run there. It was a fun night with my daughter and a wonderful memory that I will treasure. It was also great being able to share it with my good friend, even if it was over the phone miles away.

Chalking up the memories,

Texas Fan

P.S. Come back for my last and FINAL Manilow blogs:

December 28-Making those Vegas memories

December 29-Here's to Las Vegas--where did the time go?

December 30-What happens in Vegas...can't stay in Vegas

December 31-It's ALL about the Music